British Basketball announce under-20 men's coaching and team staff

GB's under-20 men in group huddle before their 2013 European Championship semi-final against Hungary

Following the recent confirmation that both GB under-20 programmes will go ahead this summer, British Basketball is now pleased to be able to confirm the under-20 Men's coaching staff.

The under-20 men's European Championships will commence on Thursday, 10 July, in Crete, Greece where Great Britain will play in Group A alongside the hosts, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania and Hungary.

Douglas Leichner, who in his first year led the 2013 team to promotion to Division-A, will continue as the head coach. His assistant James Vear will also return along with a good returning group of players. James is currently coaching professionally in Denmark with Aalborg Vikings where he was recently voted coach of the year.

Joining them as a performance-analyst coach is Andreas Kapoulas who has been the under-16 England men's head coach for the past two years. Andreas also is also involved in domestic competition, coaching the Bristol Flyers in England Basketball's Men's Division 1.

In commenting on the programme, British Basketball's National Teams Director Warwick Cann said; "We are very grateful for the ongoing commitment by the staff in what has been a challenging time.

"We are particularly pleased to retain the core of last year's successful coaches as we compete in Division-A for the first time. The continuity of staff will undoubtedly help the team's performance."

Ross Norfolk has been appointed as the team manager, taking over from Mark Lloyd who will continue as senior men's team manager in 2014. Ross is the England Basketball Regional Performance Centre Coordinator for the East Region and was assistant team manager to the senior men's team in 2013.

In speaking with gbbasketball.com, head coach, Douglas Leichner commented; "We have a great challenge ahead as we move to Division-A of the European Championships. I am excited about the staff we have assembled and look forward to the great opportunity.

"We are excited about this talented group and look forward to the selection process. Last year's promotion has put this group in place to compete on the big stage and we must quickly gel if we want to be considered serious contenders."

Camp is scheduled to open on Wednesday, 11 June with the player invite list to be announced in the coming weeks .The team will play preparation tournaments in both France and Spain prior to their departure for European Championships in early July.